Big East Basketball Power Rankings: Top tier emerging, Xavier plummeting

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - JANUARY 15: Romaro Gill #35 of the Seton Hall Pirates celebrate with teammates after scoring against the Butler Bulldogs in the second half of the game at Hinkle Fieldhouse on January 15, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Seton Hall defeated Butler 78-70. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – JANUARY 04: Coach McDermott of the Bluejays reacts. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Villanova, Seton Hall, and Butler headline the league this season with solid crop of Tier 2 teams following them. Creighton, in my opinion, is the top team in the second tier even if it has not been particularly impressive since the beginning of conference play. While Providence might have a much better Big East record than Creighton, the non-conference performances still matter a bit for these rankings and the difference in in-conference SOS is significant so far.

During this past week, Creighton took down Xavier and then fell to Georgetown during a two-game road trip. All in all, that’s a pretty solid week and there’s not too much to complain about. The Bluejays are a fringe Top 25 team in the country, in my opinion, and should be a sure-fire NCAA Tournament team by the time Selection Sunday rolls around. Their offense is flat-out elite and their undersized forwards do a nice job using their speed and quickness to their advantage to offset their lack of height.

Looking ahead on Creighton’s schedule, the team’s next three games are all very winnable: vs. Providence, at DePaul, vs. Xavier. It is relatively likely that Bluejays would be able to sweep that stretch and that would greatly improve their conference record. While some might be worried about Creighton starting 2-3 in Big East play, I think that the team will be just fine. It has played a tough schedule so far that will get a little big easier with time.

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